


Aeryn Wakes

by TheFlamingNymph



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Colonist (Mass Effect), F/M, Hospitalization, Hurt, Injury, Injury Recovery, Major Character Injury, Medical Trauma, Near Death, Near Death Experiences, Paragade (Mass Effect), Paragon Commander Shepard, Post-Destroy Ending, Psychological Trauma, Thane Dies AU, Trauma, Two Shepards AU, War Hero (Mass Effect)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-06
Updated: 2015-10-06
Packaged: 2018-04-25 02:25:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4943122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFlamingNymph/pseuds/TheFlamingNymph
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She went into the final push never expecting to make it out alive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aeryn Wakes

**Author's Note:**

> Set in an AU where there are two Shepards, but Thane dies as normal.

Every bullet she shot she thought of something else, someone else. Every step closer she thought of another reason she was doing this, and pulling the trigger became easier. The galaxy wasn’t enough, but these faces flashing before her, they were. Ryal and Garrus, Kolyat, Joker, Liara, Kaidan and Vega and Cortez… they were why she was doing this. She thought of them first, as the casing began to crack and fire licked out from the cracks.

Next were those that had gone before her: Anderson, Mordin, Legion, Liam, her parents… Thane. She closed her eyes briefly, holding the image of him in her mind, the feel of his scales against her fingertips, the taste of him on her lips, the rumble of his voice in her ear. Her finger came down one last time on the trigger and raised her face to the oncoming heat that enveloped her. She welcomed the sudden deafness, the lack of stimulus, the void of everything.

* * *

 

It smelled of the sea, Aeryn realized slowly, her body becoming aware of a rocking motion that set fire to her nerves and made her want to scream. She arched against the pain, the metallic taste of blood in her mouth, gasping as she felt her head go under. Arms like bars slid under her, holding her up, still in the water but away from the fear of drowning. She forced her eyes open, staring blindly into the sudden onslaught of visual information, swivelling around until they settled on something familiar, so familiar it broke her heart.

“Thane.” She croaked, her throat dry, scratching, aching. “It hurts… everything hurts…” She didn’t remember this pain from the last time she died. Yes, there had been pain leading up to it, horrible choking pain as her lungs refused to fill and collapsed as the pressure in her suit went haywire, a pain of the heart as she reached for Ryal and found her drifting too far away, in her own agony. But once that ended… everything had just gone black. No pain, no sight, nothing. Nothing like this, this fire over every part of her, set deep in her bones and radiating out.

“Your soul is refusing to relinquish its hold on your body, Siha. It is not yet time.” His smile for her was sad, and he cradled her to his chest gently for a moment. “It strayed too far, but it is not yet free. I must send you back.”

“No… please…” She could barely force the words out through her clenched teeth, the burning increasing, rattling through her veins.

“I will see you on the shore when next we meet, Siha. I love you.” His arms withdrew from her slowly, releasing her weight to be absorbed by the water. She tried to shout the words back as the water rushed over her face, the salt water stinging her eyes and filling her mouth.

* * *

 

Garrus noticed the movement first, as Ryal was still asleep at Aeryn’s side. It was small, but notable: the reflexive clenching of her hand, her back arching slightly, eyes fluttering behind her lids. Never all at once, and always in short spurts, but it was the best hope they had had in days. Aeryn was alive, yes, but the doctors had been uncertain whether she would ever wake up. There was extensive damage, and not all limited to the physical.

When it happened, it was sudden, violent, messy. Her breath choked on the intake like a drowning woman, and her back arched as far as it could. The movement woke Ryal with a start. A thin wail emanated from Aeryn and her head thrashed from side to side, eyes wide and unseeing. The wail turned into a shriek before Ryal could react, her hands slapped the bed around her, seeking something to grasp, finding Ryal’s arm.

Garrus was halfway to the bed, yelling for the nurses as he went. Ryal put her arms around the redheaded woman, crying and trying to comfort her at the same time. Garrus watched Aeryn’s hands closest of all, the grasping, yanking, working of their own accord. One found some of the tubes leading into the opposite arm, and Garrus grabbed her before she managed to pull them free.

He almost couldn’t hear the beeping of the nurse adjusting the sedative through the console behind him. Aeryn’s eyes spun around the room in slowly diminishing circles as the sedative took effect, coming to rest weary and unfocused on his own as her eyelids drooped. Wet trails flowed from the corners of her eyes as they finally fluttered shut and her chest fell back into an easier rhythm.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos make my day.
> 
> Comments make my entire life and motivate me. Put your reaction in that convienently placed box a little south of here and hit send. Just do it. Make my life.


End file.
